Videos of the Day: A Winter Wonderland in Washington

A massive winter storm rolled eastward to the mid-Atlantic United States on Jan. 13 after dropping more than a foot of snow on parts of the Midwest, killing at least 7 people in highway accidents on Jan. 12.

Millions of Americans in ten states and Washington, D.C. were under a winter storm warning on Jan. 13.

It was the first major snowfall of the season in the U.S. capital.

Washington was forecast to receive almost a half foot of snow, forcing airlines to cancel over one hundred flights leaving Reagan National Airport on the morning of Jan. 13.

Army Veteran Receives Wheelchair-Accessible Home

An American flag now flies high above this brand new Southampton county home, and with the snip of a ribbon, Army Corporal Kevin McCloskey says his life can finally get back to normal.

In June of 2008, Corporal McCloskey was driving in a convoy in Afghanistan when his vehicle struck an IED. He lost both his legs, vision in his right eye, and suffered burns and a traumatic brain injury. “Without the guys that I was with, I wouldn’t be here,” McCloskey said.

Years later, Corporal McCloskey and his wife Bridget moved into their first home. But McCloskey said: “Not one of the door frames were accessible for a chair so it was really impossible to get around to cook, to go to the bathroom, to shower ... everything took hours.”

That’s when Homes For Our Troops stepped in.

With the help of Lansdale Catholic raising tens of thousands of dollars and other community support, the national non-profit built this home for the McCloskey’s to move into without a mortgage. Homes For Our Troops organizers say they made the entire home wheelchair accessible, from the walkways and the doorways, all the way to the kitchen where the wheelchair has room to go underneath the countertops.

The McCloskey’s say they have no doubt the life they wanted will start here.

Iceland’s Northern Lights: a Beautiful Sight

Spending a calm winter night under an Arctic sky lit up by the Northern Lights is an often-cited ‘bucket-list’ experience and among the reasons why more people are visiting northern Iceland.

The remote region at the edge of the Arctic Circle is one of the best places in the world to spot the colorful phenomenon.

The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, occur when magnetic solar winds slam into the Earth’s magnetic field, causing atoms in the upper atmosphere to glow.

With many tourists already out on the roads, police in Iceland are reminding visitors to put safety first and not to underestimate the challenging winter conditions as they search for the Northern Lights.